Indefinite pronoun

An indefinite pronoun is a pronoun that refers to non-specific beings, objects, or places.

Indefinite pronouns can represent either count nouns or noncount nouns and include a number of sub-categories: universal (such as everyone, everything), assertive existential (such as somebody, something), elective existential (such as anyone, anything), and negative (such as nobody, nothing).[1]

They are associated with indefinite determiners (sometimes called indefinite adjectives) of a similar (or identical) form (such as every, any, all, some). A pronoun can be thought of as replacing a noun phrase, while a determiner introduces a noun phrase and precedes any adjectives that modify the noun. Thus all is an indefinite determiner in "all good boys deserve favour" but a pronoun in "all are happy".

List of English indefinite pronouns

Note that many of these words can function as other parts of speech too, depending on context. For example, in many disagree with his views the word "many" functions as an indefinite pronoun, while in many people disagree with his views it functions as a quantifier (a type of determiner) that qualifies the noun "people". Example sentences in which the word functions as an indefinite pronoun are given.

Most indefinite pronouns are either singular or plural. However, some of them can be singular in one context and plural in another. The most common indefinite pronouns are listed below, with examples, as singular, plural or singular/plural.

Notice that a singular pronoun takes a singular verb. Also, any personal pronoun should also agree (in number and gender):

Similarly, plural pronouns need plural agreement:

Table of indefinite pronouns

Number Type Negative Universal Assertive existential Elective existential* Other
Singular Person no one (also no-one), nobody No one/Nobody thinks that you are mean. everyone, everybody Everyone/Everybody had a cup of coffee. someone, somebody Someone/Somebody should fix that. anyone, anybody Anyone/Anybody can see this. one One might see it that way. See also generic you.
Thing nothing Nothing is true. everything Everything is permitted. something Something makes me want to dance. anything Anything can happen if you just believe. this This can't be good.

[Universal distributive:]

See also -ever and who-.

Dual neither In the end, neither was selected. both Both are guilty. either Either will do.
Plural
  • others Others can worry about that.
Singular or plural none None of those people is related to me.[lower-alpha 1] all All is lost. some Some of the biscuits have been eaten. any Any will do.
  • such Such is life.

 *The elective existential pronouns are often used with negatives (I can't see anyone), and in questions (Is anyone coming?).

List of quantifier pronouns

English has the following quantifier pronouns:

Uncountable (thus, with a singular verb form)
Countable, singular
Countable, plural

Some people say that "none" should always take a singular verb, even when talking about countable nouns (e.g. five friends). They argue that "none" means "no one", and "one" is obviously singular. They say that "I invited five friends but none has come" is correct and "I invited five friends but none have come" is incorrect. Actual usage evidence does not support this view. "None" has been used for hundreds of years with both a singular and a plural verb, according to the context and the emphasis required.

Possessive forms

Some of the English indefinite pronouns above have possessive forms. These are made as for nouns, by adding 's, or just an apostrophe following a plural -s (see English possessive).

The most commonly encountered possessive forms of the above pronouns are:

Note that most of these forms are identical to a form representing the pronoun plus -'s as a contraction of is or has. Hence someone's may also mean someone is or someone has, as well as serving as a possessive.

Compound indefinite pronouns

Two indefinite pronouns can sometimes be used in combination together.

Examples: We should respect each other. People should love one another.

And they can also be made possessive by adding an apostrophe and s.

Examples: We should respect each other's beliefs. We were checking each other's work.

See also

Notes

  1. Some traditional style guides state that "none" should always be treated as singular, but the plural sense is well established and widely accepted. See, for example, a blog entry by Michael Quinion or none in the Compact Oxford English Dictionary.

References

  1. Quirk et al. 1985, pp. 376–377.

Bibliography

External links

Look up indefinite pronoun in Wiktionary, the free dictionary.
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